


Before The Grave

by AHeartForStories



Series: Midlink Week 2020 [1]
Category: The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Genre: F/M, Gen, Headcanon, Hero of Time, Platonic Relationships, Romantic Friendship, Sorrow, Supernatural Elements, Zelda - Freeform, both mentioned - Freeform, midlink week, midlink week 2020, platonic, romantic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-13
Updated: 2020-04-13
Packaged: 2021-03-01 16:49:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 994
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23630353
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AHeartForStories/pseuds/AHeartForStories
Summary: Though they knew they needed to hurry, when Link and Midna come upon the supposed grave of the Cursed Swordsman, they can't help but take a moment. Written for Midlink Week 2020 over on Tumblr. Based on a headcanon.
Relationships: Link & Midna (Legend of Zelda), Link/Midna (Legend of Zelda)
Series: Midlink Week 2020 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1701049
Comments: 2
Kudos: 47





	Before The Grave

**Author's Note:**

> Day 1 - Cursed  
> A short one-shot written for Midlink Week 2020 over on Tumblr. First time writing Link and Midna together!  
> Constructive criticism is appreciated.  
> Enjoy!

Though they knew time was of the essence the second they stepped foot inside the walls bordering Hyrule Castle, Midna and Link couldn't help but stand before the great old tree rooted in a hidden graveyard at the back of the grounds.

"The Cursed Swordsman lies here..." Midna spoke, remembering what the gravestone they'd come across said. Why he would be buried here of all places was beyond both of them, but that is the claim the stone made. They were in a cemetery, after all, so that wasn't the strange part. What was, was that the supposed final resting place was unmarked and at the roots of a tree that seemed just as ordinary as any other tree in the castle gardens.

The reason Link and Midna knew this was the tree in question was because of the restless spirits of Hyrulean knights gathered around it. They'd seen them, Link with his keen senses as a wolf. They stood there nearly motionlessly, unrecognizable, their decayed fingers pointing towards a spot in front of the tree, where the swordsman was buried.

"He's not." Floating in the air next to him, Midna turned and gave Link a look as he spoke up.

"This isn't a grave, it's empty." He clarified sadly, but all that did was give her more questions than answers.

She didn't ask him to elaborate, already figuring that he wouldn't even know himself why he thought so.

Throughout their journey, Link had the bad habit of just knowing things and then not being able to explain exactly why he knew them.

Such as back when they needed to enter the Forest Temple for a Fused Shadow and he was reluctant to walk inside of the two giant trees that had woven together over time.

And yes, while it was obvious that it was a sacred place once, there were also more random instances. Such as the well in Kakariko village. Just something about it made him want to walk the long way around. When asked, he just shrugged and told his companion that he didn't like that well in particular, like something inside of him told him it was a bad place.

In the beginning, Midna called it his quirk, the superstitions of a farmer, the influence of the wolf, more so for the reason that she wasn't particularly interested in knowing why.

Midna couldn't help but think back to when he drew the Master Sword from its pedestal and it almost seemed like greeting an old friend.

Midna had been surprised the Sword of Evil's Bane accepted him in the first place, but even more surprising was how utterly comfortable he was with it. It wasn't quite because he was a skilled swordsman already, it was more as if he'd drawn the blade before. Something that Link had insisted was not the case when she asked.

He held it in his hand as they stood there before the supposed grave, the sword so comfortable in his hold as if it had always belonged there.

It was almost like he'd somehow lived through all of this already.

"Does it make you sad?" Midna asked him, noting how upset he looked.

"Not really sad, just... I don't know what I feel. Nothing positive." Link explained and felt a hand of Midna's settling on his shoulder.

There was a feeling, the slight inkling he knew who this unmarked grave was supposed to belong to. And it was someone who, despite knowing very little about him, Link had come to hold dear to his heart.

This was a man, a hero barely remembered by the kingdom he'd saved, the same one who had trained him and given him secret sword techniques belonging to their shared bloodline. Link didn't know how many generations there were between them, but he had a feeling it weren't that many. The armor he wore, torn by battle and weathered by nature, it told a story of abandonment. Each and every time he thought back to him, Link's heart ached.

This wasn't the Cursed Swordsman's grave because his body had never been recovered for some reason and Link could hardly even begin to explain why he thought so.

Midna knew of the skeletal figure, believed him when he told her he was the one Link saw in an ethereal plane whenever he mysteriously passed out the second he and the Golden Wolf touched. With all the strange things they'd experienced on this journey together, most of which Link could never talk about with anyone but her, Link was glad Midna was there. She'd helped him stay sane through all of this.

"We should go." Link spoke and Midna withdrew as he turned to find the hole they'd entered this graveyard from. They were at Hyrule Castle for a reason and they'd stood around doing nothing but stare for far too long. Princess Zelda needed them, after all her sacrifices, it was time to save her and put an end to Hyrule's dark times for good.

Midna watched Link walk off for a moment. She may not understand what exactly was going on here, but she knew when something bothered him and this place, this empty grave of a mysterious Cursed Swordsman, it sent chills down his spine. And after everything they'd been through together, it was difficult to get to the young hero like this.

Midna gave the empty grave one last glance, could still faintly see the knights gathered around the tree and point to a grassy spot in the middle, a spot reserved symbolically for someone who wasn't actually physically there.

"Midna?" She could hear Link calling for her, he couldn't exit this closed-off graveyard without her help and Midna turned away from the tree to float Link's way.

In spite of being stuck in this impish form even after regaining the Fused Shadow and putting an end to Zant, Midna wondered which one of them was more cursed.

**Author's Note:**

> I am most definitely headcanoning that the supposed grave of the Cursed Swordsman belongs to none other than the Hero of Time himself. It seems kind of out of place otherwise. And it makes sense with all the references to Ocarina of Time in Twilight Princess.  
> I also like to headcanon that there are certain things that TP Link retained from his previous life. No actual memories, but more like an instinct, a sense. Mainly because of how closely related OoT and TP Link are.


End file.
